The UCLA cross country teams will travel to Corvallis, Ore. to take part in the 39th annual Pac-10 Conference Championship on Saturday. The No. 19 men’s team, coming off an eighth-place finish at the NCAA Pre-National Invitational, will compete in the 8-kilometer race that will feature three teams ranked ahead of them in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Poll.
“We have a lot to run for,” coach Eric Peterson said. “We are ranked behind No. 1 Oregon, No. 8 California, and No. 15 Stanford. On paper, the “˜experts’ would pick us fourth, but we feel that we’re a stronger team than that and we’re certainly going to do everything we possibly can to place higher than that.”
So far this season, Peterson has allowed his younger athletes to gain valuable experience by running them at races of less importance. The results have been impressive, as UCLA has taken first place in the four races in which they have ran a roster filled with an abundance of youth. While the future of the cross country team appears bright, the team is solely focused on the task at hand.
“The opportunity to gain confidence in running well in a championship meet is here for us,” Peterson said. “We’ve worked very hard to get to this point and our men’s team is riding a wave of enthusiasm and high hopes for a very positive result in the conference championship. Our goal is to be among the top two teams.”
High ambitions indeed, considering that UCLA ran to a fifth-place finish at last year’s conference championships. Although UCLA is a deep and consistent team, redshirt senior Austin Ramos and junior Laef Barnes will look to help lead them to their desired outcome.
“Individually, I’d like to be one of the top finishers in the race,” Ramos said. “I think it’s between me and three other guys who have a legitimate shot at winning it, but I would be happy finishing anywhere in top two or three. As a team, we want to win the race, but we’d be happy with a second place finish.”
In the two races in which he has participated, Ramos has been able to recapture the form that earned him All-American accolades in 2005. Ramos finished fifth overall at the Bill Dellinger Invitational and 15th at the Pre-National Invitational in Terre Haute, Ind. Barnes won the season’s first race, the Nevada Twilight Cross Country Classic, and was the second Bruin to cross the finish line at the Dellinger.
“(Barnes) has improved a lot from the type of results that he was producing a year ago,” Peterson said. “Laef is the x-factor on this team, he has such high level of talent. There is no telling what his capabilities are, the sky is the limit for this kid.”
Still, both Ramos and Barnes praise the team’s consistency during practice as a method of improvement.
“Ramos is our team leader and I’ve been impressed with him every week because he is so consistent,” Barnes said. “Kyle and Drew Shackleton are probably the most disciplined and dedicated runners I have ever met or ever will meet. It’s just a great team to be a part of.”
Saturday will mark the beginning of what should be an exciting postseason for the optimistic Bruins. Nonetheless, Peterson remains adamant about not looking too far ahead.
“We’re not going to get ahead of ourselves at all,” Peterson said. “This is all about the Pac-10 Conference and it doesn’t have any other implications for Regionals or Nationals, it’s just one championship meet that we’re going to go out and give our best effort and see if we can win it.”
Even though the Oregon sky is anticipated to be overflowing with clouds on Saturday, the women’s team will not be gloomy if they fail to come out victorious. The women will compete in an exceptionally difficult 6-kilometer race. UCLA is matched up against four teams ranked in the top 10; No. 1 Stanford, No. 2 Oregon, No. 5 Arizona St., and No. 9 Washington. For Peterson, it boils down to maintaining realistic aspirations.
“When we are at our best, we really are more of a mid-pack team in this conference championship,” Peterson said regarding the women’s chances. “The top four teams not only are elite teams, but are also elite in the nation. Our team hasn’t performed up to that level yet, so our number one goal is to beat the teams we feel that we can beat.”
“Our team goal going in is to get fifth place,” senior Claire Rethmeier said. “Right now, the top four teams are pretty good. For us winning the race would be like taking fifth, so that’s our goal.”
The Bruins will depend on Rethmeier’s leadership and a strong effort from freshman Shannon Murakami in order to achieve a successful result.
“This is Claire’s last opportunity … as a cross country runner,” Peterson said. “These postseason races are very meaningful to her. She has been focused … and is very eager to put it all out there.”